The LSU football team held its first spring practice today, and coach Les Miles said and the team felt good about the way practice went.
“Very good first day. We got a lot accomplished,” Miles said. “In the throwing game, we got a lot accomplished in the two-minute hurry-ups, and you just have to have that attention to detail. It’s the first practice of 15 practices with a lot to be accomplished and a lot to do, but for the first one there was a lot of enthusiasm and a lot of guys who enjoyed it.
“I really enjoyed today’s practice, and I don’t know if I’ve been around a practice to start a spring that has been that productive.”
Miles harped on the quarterback position, which is a question mark for the Tigers going into the fall. He said junior Anthony Jennings and sophomore Brandon Harris will battle for the position, but he also acknowledged the talent of freshman Justin McMillan.
Miles said new additions to his coaching staff positively influenced today’s session. He praised the way the coaches handled their respective players and their ability to get the players prepared to start working.
“When you start with the offense, and [wide receivers coach] Tony Ball did a very nice job preparing his guys,” Miles said. “He is going to be a guy who starts with stance and really improves the position one step at a time. Right on through, Ball is going to make us better.”
Miles also said the defense was especially conditioned for today and commended his new high-profile coaching additions for their production so early in training.
“[Defensive coordinator] Kevin Steele did a very nice job putting the defense in position to be ready. The defense was ready to play today,” Miles said. “[Defensive line coach] Ed Orgeron did a great job with the defensive line. We’re young there, but we’re very talented and it appeared that talent has started to come to the front. We’re looking forward to playing and playing hard.”